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The Greenway Foundation

The Greenway Foundation

Revitalizing Rivers. Reconnecting Communities.

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Colors of the River

watercolor group painting at SPREE camp

On Monday we all introduced ourselves for the final week of camp. We introduced the color wheel, the basis for all art activities this week, and brainstormed all the different colors we can see in the natural world around us. We will continue to color in the details through the rest of the week.

On Tuesday we had a rainy day which inspired us, and our special guest from the Arvada Art Center, to make some beautiful torn paper landscapes. Some campers chose to focus on the weather, making snowy and rainy scenes, while others glued together mountains or tropical landscapes. After that we continued to craft with paint, paper mache, rocks and other natural materials. The rain also proved its power at a really cool Critter Crawl where campers were able to safely watch the river rise and still catch a few crawdads. 

On Wednesday after the rain subsided we were able to look at all the effects of a flash flood in Denver along the river. We drew inspiration from the new river, sand, and rock textures brought about from the rain and put that right into making rocks out of clay without special guest Mary. Mary taught us about clay and an upcoming art project she will be using our rocks in along the South Platte River at Confluence Park. 

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Thursday on field day was a messy one! We used shaving cream to make a water marbled paper effect; dirt, charcoal, and sticks to make our own paint brushes and paints; and pretended to be all a part of a silent art gallery. It was toasty but we got to cool down by the river and notice cool patterns on flatworms, the claws of crawdad, and on the smallest rocks. 

On Friday we filled our final day of camp with more art, making animal sculptures out of natural materials, drawing some abstract patterns, all of course inspired by the critters we found at Critter Crawl. A kind camper also brought in Pizza for our final lunch all together and popsicles for everyone to take home after a great summer with Chompers along the South Platte River, and the entire SPREE Staff. 

Published: August 19, 2022
Category: Elementary, SPREETag: Art, Camp, Johnson Habitat Park
SPREE

About SPREE

South Platte River Environmental Education (SPREE) has been introducing Denver area youth to the river through school excursions, day camps, weekend events, internships, and summer employment for over 40 years. Learn More

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The Greenway Foundation

1820 Platte Street, Denver, CO 80202

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303.481.1974

FEIN: 51-0193575

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